Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 January 2026
719. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the position regarding the implementation of 16.7% uplift on personal injury guidelines following the independent report carried out by the Injuries Resolution Board, which was launched by the Minister on 16 October 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3427/26]
View answerOn 17 September 2025, as required by section 7 of the Judicial Council Act 2019, I laid the revised personal injury guidelines before the Houses of the Oireachtas. Prior to laying the documents, I consulted Ministerial colleagues and the Attorney General in relation to the proposed increase in award amounts contained in the Judicial Council’s proposals. While there were concerns that any delay in the adoption of new guidelines could lead to the courts being invited to depart from the guidelines and to seek higher awards reflecting the effect of inflation, to be applied at the discretion of the Court, I was also conscious of concerns raised in relation to potential inflationary pressures.
Therefore, it is my intention not to bring a Resolution before the Houses seeking the approval of the guidelines at this time. In effect, this means that the amended Guidelines cannot come into effect and the existing Guidelines will remain in place. In addition, I have received Government approval to draft a general scheme of a Bill to amend the Judicial Council Act 2019 to make reviews of the Personal Injuries Guidelines more comprehensive and transparent. The General Scheme of the Bill will be referred for Pre-Legislative Scrutiny.
I welcome the Review of Compensation for Minor Soft-tissue Injuries in Ireland and the United Kingdom, an independent report prepared by the Injuries Resolution Board, in collaboration with Deloitte, at the request of the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment.
I note that the proposed changes to the Judicial Council Act will strengthen the provisions regarding research and consultation with the Injuries Resolution Board in the development of revised personal injuries guidelines.
